Written By Jeffrey Reed
With Old Man Winter making his presence known in a big way this month, the local golfing community pines even more for fairways and greens. In fact, the local golf industry is already hard at work planning for the 2025 season.
An added element of that preparation is the LondonOntarioGolf.com-generated 2024 London & Area Golf Survey, the largest such survey ever released in Southwestern Ontario. Drawing 1,017 responses from golfers from London and surrounding counties, the survey ran during the 2024 golf season and included 50 multiple choice questions related to playing and spending trends. Valuable findings are now available to golf course owners, retailers, travel industry professionals and local municipalities – all of whom rely on the game of golf to generate revenue.
Per capita, Southwestern Ontario is home to the most golf courses in North America. In London and surrounding counties, local golfers have access to 13 private golf clubs, 112 semi-private and public clubs, 20 stand-alone outdoor golf practice centres, numerous golf ranges housed at local clubs, plus a growing number of indoor golf simulators and practice centres.
The golf industry contributes tens of millions of dollars annually to the local economy, including spending at golf clubs, retail sales and charity golf fundraising. In addition to supporting pro shops, stand-alone retailers and not-for-profit groups, local golfers purchase equipment, apparel and accessories online.
There are many key findings from the 2024 London & Area Golf Survey. More than half (50.94%) of respondents were age 45 to 64 – a golfing demographic traditionally the highest in Canada. Most (59.49%) of all 1,017 golfers surveyed said they have golfed for more than 25 years, while almost half of survey participants (48.48%) began golfing as teenagers.
An impressive 88% of respondents consider themselves avid golfers, as opposed to casual golfers, with 60.57% playing more than 40 rounds per year. Another 27.83% said they play 21 to 40 rounds each season. These numbers offer further fodder to the fact that London and area can well be defined and marketed as a golfing community which, per capita, is unrivaled in North America. Without a doubt, local municipalities, economic development offices and our Chamber of Commerce groups can all benefit from a more concerted effort in marketing Southwestern Ontario as a golf destination.
Surveyed golfers noted three main reasons why they invest in the golf lifestyle, including: passion for the game (88.5%); social outing (87.12%); and exercise (78.37%) – the World Golf Foundation estimates walking a golf course burns approximately 2,000 calories over a five-mile course.
With 125 golf courses in Southwestern Ontario, it’s no surprise that the majority of golfers (43%) travel from 0 to 10 KM to reach their home club or most visited golf course. Another 40.61% said they drive from 11 to 20 KM to reach their clubs. The biggest reason (91.05%) local golfers enjoy golfing in Southwestern Ontario is close proximity, followed by variety of golf courses (72.76%).
The entire 2024 London & Area Golf Survey is available for download for free at the Golf section of LondonOntarioSports.com.
Award-winning writer
Jeffrey Reed has covered Middlesex County sports since 1980. He is publisher and editor of LondonOntarioSports.com. Reach him at
jeff@londonontariosports.com.
